Changing Motion Start Times
You have probably noticed that if an RPC Automobile or 3.5D Walking Person is placed into a scene that it will begin moving at frame 0. However, not everyone wants the RPC Object to begin moving at frame 0. Perhaps we want the RPC Object to not start moving until frame 30 or even frame 3,028. The following document will show you how.
In the images below you will see how the RPC advances a significant distance only after 10 frames. This is because the RPC is traveling at a constant speed (velocity). However, it is possible to change the speed and create a key.
Frame 0
Frame 10
For this example, our goal is to make the car start moving on frame 30. With AutoKey enabled, go to the frame where you want the motion to start and then step back a frame and enter the value 0 for speed. For this example we want the car to begin moving in frame 30, so we will designate speed 0 in frame 29. Be sure that the speed is also set to 0 at frame 0. In frame 30 you can designate the speed that the RPC Objects will start moving. If you want it to gradually speed up, use a lower number. For this example, we selected 1. Finally in the last frame of your animation (the last frame here is 100) enter the maximum speed. The speed assignments for this example are shown below.
Using these settings the car will not begin to move until frame 30.
At frame 30 the care will begin to accelerate and continue to gradually accelerate until frame 100 (the final frame) as it approaches the max speed of 14.
Once you have mastered this concept, you can begin animating your RPC Automobiles or Walking People in stop and go environments. You can use the same technique for deceleration and stopping and then beginning acceleration again.
Note: Walking People will walk in place even at a speed of 0, because the animated sequence will continue although the object is traveling along the spline at speed 0.
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